Hub to Keep Charities on Right Side of Privacy Laws

Picture: ADMA

Following changes to Australia’s privacy laws, with possible $1million fines for marketers, including charities who break the law, marketing and advertising Association, ADMA, has launched an Marketing Compliance Hub.

The Marketing Compliance Hub is a centralised, one-stop resource where marketers and advertisers including Not for Profits can go to ensure their marketing campaigns remain on the right side of the law and are up to date on the latest developments in compliance.

ADMA says the hub has two purposes: to provide regular updates on what is happening in the world of marketing and advertising compliance (daily from February 2013) and offer ‘how to’ guides through videos, webinars, FAQs and checklists.

“The Marketing Compliance Hub is now the 24/7 ‘go to’ resource to help advertisers and marketers practise responsible marketing and keep abreast of regulatory developments like the recent changes to the privacy laws,” ADMA CEO, Jodie Sangster said.

“There is no other resource like this in Australia.

“The Marketing Compliance Hub is a valuable resource for any organisation that markets or advertises to consumers.

“Charities are traditionally high-volume, data-driven marketers reaching out to their supporters and potential supporters. But often they don’t have the resources to be compliant (eg in-house lawyers). So the ADMA Marketing Compliance Hub is a good first port of call for information to ensure a charity stays on the right side of the law.

“The hub is a plain English service that can help organisations to understand their obligations and do the right thing by their supporters.

“Right now, any charity can go into the compliance hub and look up information. It is available for a few months and then will be open to ADMA members only," Sangster said. 

There’s also global information to educate marketers about compliance issues overseas which may impact here.

The Privacy Amendment (Enhancing Privacy Protection) Bill 2012 was introduced to Federal Parliament on 23 May 2012 and was passed with amendments on 29 November 2012. the changes to the Privacy Act will come into force in March 2014.

The Federal Government says key changes include:

• clearer and tighter regulation of the use of personal information for direct marketing
• extending privacy protections to unsolicited information
• making it easier for consumers to access and correct information held about them
• tightening the rules on sending personal information outside Australia
• a higher standard of protection to be afforded to “sensitive information” – which includes health related information, DNA and biometric data
• enhancing the powers of the Privacy Commissioner to improve the Commissioner’s ability to resolve complaints, conduct investigations and promote privacy compliance.